Marla
by QueenOfDragons2
Summary: When Marla, Chell's oldest child, reads her mom's diary, she runs away to the surface to escape punishment by her dad. However, she ends up going on the most exciting and dangerous adventure of her life. First-person viewpoint. On hiatus.
1. Marla

My name is Marla. I live in an underground colony of humans. It's been here since the early 21st century. At least, that's what the history books say. If they're right, then that means that this colony has been here for not much over 27,000 years. Long time, isn't it?

Let me tell you about it. The colony is designed to be self-sustaining, able to grow more than enough food for its maximum population. The max population for the city (AKA how many people there is room for here) is 5 million people. Considering the size of the colony, that's kinda impressive. I can only imagine what this city would look like if we were at our max population. For my whole life, the population has been around 500. It gets rather creepy when you're in a sector that's uninhabited and there's nobody else with you.

Let me explain why the city's population is at about only 500. A plague. A plague that occurred the week after my mom came to the colony. When she came to the colony from the surface, the population was about 2 million. The plague lasted about six months. If your jaw is hanging open and your eyes are wide, that's not a surprise because that's the same reaction I had when I found out. What I found even more shocking was the mortality rate. Everyone who had gotten the disease died three days later. Except for my mom. She was the only person in the history of the colony who got the disease and recovered. Just like everyone else, she went into a coma a few hours after the first symptoms showed up. However, instead of dying, she woke up three days later. She fully recovered a day later. When the doctors found out, they did every kind of test they had on her. They found traces of a variety of something called "neurotoxin" in her blood, but that was the only thing unusual. Unfortunately, she didn't know what kind it was. Just thought I should mention that. Anyway, fear of the disease still exists today. Most people are afraid to have children, and the ones that do have children are quite overprotective of them. This is because pregnant women and children were always the first ones to get it. A lot is known about how the disease works since it's struck the colony a total of ten times. The 9th time it struck, they were able to find out three things about it: 1. the disease is caused by an unknown bacteria, 2. an individual bacteria cell lasts about three hours, and 3. the bacteria multiplies at an incredible rate: it doubles in just one second. If you do the math, it's no wonder it spreads so quickly. They've never been able to find a cure, or at least a way to prevent it. I should probably stop talking about the plague now.

Let's see, more about the colony… Oh yes. They do their best to replicate the weather conditions the colony would be in if it was on the surface. I couldn't give a comparison, but my mom and dad think they've done a perfect job. Snow, rain, sunshine, if it's happening on the surface, it's happening down here. I once asked one of the scientists why they did that. He said, and I quote, "In case we end up having to abandon this colony. If we kept it at optimal conditions for humans, we might not be able to survive in the outside world." He didn't say anything else.

I should probably tell you about my parents. My mom, Chell Smith, is mute. She communicates with others via gestures or writing, usually writing. She also uses a whistle to get the attention of one of my younger siblings when they're doing something she wants them to not do. It's rather ineffective with a few of them, one in particular. But more on that later. My mom, along with my dad, was born in the 20th century. She was a test subject for a company called "Aperture Science". She had been put into cryostasis and ended being there for a really long time. She was awoken by the A.I. there, who let her free. That's all she's ever said about it. I personally can't help but feel like there's more to it than that, but she isn't going to give any more information any time soon. Also, I look EXACTLY like her. Some people joke that we're clones. As for my mom's maiden name, well, she's never given that either. Mainly because she doesn't remember what it is.

My dad, Johnson Smith, was an army general against an invasion by aliens. Eventually, he, along with 5,000 others, was put into cryostasis in a massive vault. When the population of the colony found it, they were only able to revive 50 people, including my dad. That was five years before my mom came. I once asked him why he had been in the army. He said, and I quote, "My forefathers served America, and it was my duty to continue that legacy. What really prompted me into action was the death of my previous fiancée at the hands of the monstrous aliens." I believe him when he says that he was a general because he's really strict. Well, at least he used to be. He said that he had to change the way he gave out discipline when he became a father because the methods he had used in the army were either immoral to use on babies or completely ineffective against them. One thing that he will not tolerate, no matter what, is snooping (his definition is "deliberately invading others' privacy for reason such as "I just wanted to" or "Because I had the chance"). This has gotten one of my younger brothers, Jason, into trouble many times. I don't know why, but he can't help but get into other people's business. Maybe it's because he's extremely curious and has a lot of free time on his hands. He's very clever. Whenever one of the others does something bad, dad always finds out. Not Jason. He told me that, of all the times that he's snooped, he's been caught only 5% of those times. And those were because he wasn't being careful enough. Do I believe him? Yes. Anyway, in my opinion, dad really needs to learn that he doesn't need to be so strict. In fact, it's made some of my young siblings scared of him.

Now for the fun part: my siblings. Unlike a few parents I know (one woman I know can't remember the name of her 6-year-old daughter), my parents don't have that hard of a time remembering all of our names, aside from a few exceptions. Not me. I can always remember who's who and what they're like. All 26 of them. That's right, I have 26 siblings. Oh, and our mom is pregnant with female triplets. That makes a total of 30 children. Right now, you're probably thinking, "That's a lot of children!" It is. Oh, I forgot to mention something. They've invented a chemical that dramatically slows aging. They can't give it kids because, well, they never told me exactly why, but they made it clear it wasn't good. It means that women have a much larger window of opportunity to have children and can have a lot more than they used to. It has been shown to increase the chance of having twins or triplets or even quadruplets. Anyway, I'll start telling you.

I, Marla, am the oldest at age 14. In two weeks and two days, I'll be 15. That reminds me, me and my siblings all have the same birthday, June 22th. I don't know what the chances are of that happening, but they've gotta be really small. Anyway, like I said, I look exactly like my mom. I'm not mute, but some people still think I am. Some of the kids that aren't my siblings have called my mom a freak or stupid, but I always stop them. As for what I wear, it's always the same thing: a simple brown dress and no shoes. The dress is the only thing I feel comfortable in. Some people say it makes me too vulnerable, but I don't see why they say that. It's a rather stretchy dress and it isn't see-through at all. I also wear matching underwear, of course (should I have said that?). As for no shoes, well, I just never got used to them. People say I should wear them, but they're always too tight or too loose and they're just not comfortable in general. One thing I've definitely noticed is that the calluses on my feet (everybody that can walk has them, just so you know) are thicker and tougher than other people's.

John, brother aged 13, is exactly like our dad in almost every way I can think of. The main difference is that he's nicer and more carefree. For some reason, I can remember the day he was born rather clearly. I had said that it was the best birthday present ever. Our parents laughed.

Kristen and Cara, twin sisters aged 12, have some resemblance to our parents, but not as much as me or John. However, they do look exactly like each other. They've even gone so far as to dress alike so that nobody can tell the difference. Even I had difficulty telling the difference between them until an incident when I was 7 caused Cara to get a very noticeable scar near her wrist. The incident? She tripped and crashed through a window while we were visiting somebody else.

Agatha, Cyril, and Tom, triplets aged 11, are all very nice. Agatha, a girl, looks similar to our mom, but not as much as I do. She's very interested in science. Cyril and Tom look like my dad's dad and grandfather. Some people say that Agatha looks like Chell's mom, but not only does nobody know what she looks like, but mom has said that she thinks that she was adopted when she was young, so, there you have it.

Lionel, Clark, Richard, and Jason, quadruplet brothers aged 10, are the mischief-makers. I've already talked about Jason, who is the nicest of them. Lionel seriously likes to pretend to be an animal. Every time he plays with our younger siblings, it always manages to turn into a game of "predator tag", with him as the predator. It always scares them. I think that he enjoys scaring others. Clark plays practical jokes on others. A lot. He'll also do it every chance he can get. He never does one to dad, though. If dad is about to get one, Clark will do everything he can to prevent it. I think that dad traumatized him when he was three. It would make a lot of sense. Richard is very respectful of others, but he's also anger-prone and vengeful. He can get upset at even the slightest provocation. I think he has a mental disorder or something. He seriously hates dad, but never does anything about it, again out of fear.

Lucy, Franklin, and Hector, triplets aged 9, are either very mature or very immature. Lucy, a girl, often acts like she's five and refuses to acknowledge the fact that she is immature or that she is 9 years old. I don't know whether she really thinks she's five or she just doesn't want to grow up, but either way, I'm concerned about her. Franklin on the other hand, is the exact opposite. He can't wait to grow up and take on the responsibilities and privileges of an adult. He acts very maturely, even when he gets upset. I'm not sure if he's taking the time to enjoy his childhood, though. Hector is a combination of the other two. Most of the time, he's quite mature. When he gets upset, he's like a three-year-old. He is taking the time to enjoy his childhood though.

Sarah, Bella, and Lucas, triplets aged 8, are the more "average" kids. There isn't that much to say about them other than they're very ordinary kids.

Jenny, sister aged 7, has selective mutualism (meaning that she is too nervous to say anything to almost everyone). The only people she's ever talked around are me, mom, and Bella. Some of the others have been able to get her to laugh, but that's about as far as they've gotten. Jenny is also very shy and timid and submissive. She's by herself almost all the time. She even eats at a different time than the rest of us. Now that I think about it, that probably explains why she's good at cooking by herself. She's afraid of almost everything a person could be afraid of. She doesn't have any phobias, though. She's so fearful, she's too scared to move in the dark, let alone sleep. At one point, Bella offered to have Jenny sleep with her. They still do that. Jenny is also unusually small for her age. She looks like she's four years old. At this point, you're probably thinking that she gets picked on a lot. At one point, yes. That changed after the first ever long-distance, city-wide race. She insisted on being in it, even though we thought she was too nervous to run fast. All of the other kids teased her when they saw her at the starting line (kids are allowed to run if they have the permission of their parents). When the air horn that signaled the start of the race went off, she took off faster than anyone else. Three hours later, when she and she alone crossed the finish line, she was still going at that speed. She hasn't really been teased ever since then.

Travis, brother aged 6, is the most creative person I know. Whether it's telling stories via writing, painting, or word, Travis is the best. He's very popular with his classmates.

Anita and Ellen, twin sisters aged 5, are very playful and carefree, which isn't surprising.

Tyler, brother aged 4, is terrified of dad. He once told me that he had nightmares about dad. In fact, he hides whenever dad tries to come into his room and none of the older kids are there. Of course, Anita and Ellen do that too. In fact, everybody younger than Jenny does that. Anthony, brother aged 3, has a deep bond with Tyler. Of course, that's not surprising to me.

Edwina, sister aged 2, can read adult books with ease. She learned to read really fast. The doctors still aren't sure how she could do that.

Zack, brother aged 1, is rather bold, but he's also quite silly. He can speak very fluently.

Caroline and Austin, twins not even a year old yet, find almost everything funny. The main exception is dad.

That's all the children currently in our family. I am, of course, not including the female triplets mom is pregnant with. On a side note, I have no idea why, but I find heavily pregnant woman fascinating.

Anyway, you're probably wondering how our mom could stand being pregnant so many times. It's very simple: they aren't unpleasant for her. Every single time, the only major symptoms she's had that could potentially be negative (besides the distended abdomen) are cravings and exhaustion during the third trimester. Also, I remind you that our mom and dad have had a chemical injected into them that has dramatically slowed their aging. Mom's biological age is 32 while dad's is 34. In calendar years, mom is 55 and dad is 57 (I'm not counting the years they were in cryostasis).

I should talk about how mom and dad met and how they came to be married and all that stuff. For the first five years she was here, mom lived by herself in an apartment complex. She met dad during her third year here. They ended up getting to know each other quite well. Exactly five years after mom had arrived in the colony, Chell and Johnson were married. I was born on their 5th wedding anniversary. For some reason, she had at least one child every year after that and all on June 22.

One more thing. There are 20 other children in the colony. We all go to the same school.

Okay, I think I've done enough explaining for now. Now for the story.

I woke up to the sound of my alarm clock…

**Author's note: Two things I should say: 1. This is the first time I've done a story in a first-person viewpoint that wasn't mine, just so you know. Also, I haven't completely thought out the story. 2. I think it would be a good idea for me to explain why I gave Marla 26 siblings with 3 on the way. At first, Marla was a 15-year-old that was waiting the birth of her only sibling, a brother who would end up being born at the end of the story. Then, I decided to give her a brother that was half her age and both of them were waiting for their mother to give birth to twins. Then, for reasons which I do not remember, I decided to give Marla 13 siblings, all of them sharing the same birthday, with Chell pregnant with one child. I took it further and gave Marla even more siblings because I found it amusing and ridiculous. In my mind, I have justified the number of children through the ample living space that will be available when they grow up, the excess of resources, the absence of a use of currency (I didn't mention it in the story because Marla has never heard of currency), the general need of the colony to reproduce, the pleasantness of Chell's pregnancies, and Chell's and Johnson's dramatically slowed aging. Also, I'm guessing on their ages. If you want to complain about the number of children, I once read in a book about a Russian peasant in the past that had 68 children. I'm not joking. Also, you may notice that, if you include the unborn triplets, there are an equal number of girls and boys. And now I'll end this because it's getting long.**


	2. Marla's life

I woke up to the sound of my alarm clock. It was followed by the sound of some of my siblings groaning and Caroline and Austin crying, startled by the sound of my alarm.

My alarm clock is right next to the vent shaft opening in my room. Since all the other rooms have vent shaft openings and the alarm is rather loud, it's highly effective at waking up all of us.

I got out of bed a few minutes later. I was still tired, but I had to get up. I looked at the calendar on the wall. June 6th. The last day of school before summer break. I always looked forward to it. Our birthday was also marked on the calendar. I also was always excited for it.

I put on my brown dress and underwear. I went out the door…and nearly ran into John. He ran past me without saying anything. I wasn't surprised. On the last day of school (it ends on the same day for all grades), dad makes us scrambled eggs for breakfast (I forgot to mention that the colony has a huge automated farm, didn't I?). And let me tell you, he makes the greatest eggs I've ever eaten. He took a lot of cooking classes when he was younger, so it isn't surprising.

Anyway, everybody eagerly sat down at the table, anxious for the scrambled eggs. Dad had gotten up early so that he could make enough scrambled eggs in time. He always waited until all of us (excluding mom) were at the table. So they wouldn't have to wait, some of the older kids had taken the liberty of carrying the very young kids downstairs (I just realized. I completely forgot to talk about what our house looks like). Once everyone was seated, he quickly served the scrambled eggs. Once again, they were delicious. You could really tell that he was trying to be a good father, but he didn't really know how. It didn't take that long for us to finish the eggs. I and some of the older kids stayed to help wash the dishes while the rest ran off to do whatever they do in the morning (school begins at 9:00 AM for all grades and it was currently 6:09 AM. It takes us 10 minutes to walk there).

I think I have a chance to talk about my house. It has three floors. First floor: kitchen/dining room, largest bathroom in house, foyer, large staircase leading to 2nd floor, mom and dad's room, front door, large bench next to front door, and large closet. Second floor: several bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, and very large playroom. Third floor: several bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, and nursery. That's about it.

Anyway, as I left the kitchen, I was surprised to see mom on the bench next to the front door. After all, during the third trimester, mom almost never woke up until 10:00. Sometimes she wakes up around 9:00, but that's not very often.

Mom was biting her finger and she was visibly concerned. Apparently she had a nightmare.

I went over to her and said, "Mom…is everything all right?"

She looked up at me, worry filling her eyes.

"You had a nightmare where bad things happened to me, didn't you?"

Mom slowly nodded after a few moments.

"Think you could write down what happened?"

Mom nodded, and then shook her head.

"You could, but you're not going to."

She nodded.

"I wouldn't understand it, would I?"

She shook her head.

"All right then."

I then left. I had other things to do, like making sure Lionel didn't try to scare the younger kids. When I got upstairs, Jason was at the door to the playroom.

He said, "You better get in there. Lion's already "playing" with them." (We often call Lionel Lion for short.)

I immediately turned the doorknob and tried to go in. The door wouldn't budge. Jason then grabbed my arm and ran to his room next door. He opened the grate covering the vent shaft on the wall. He climbed inside and I followed. We had to be quiet so Lionel wouldn't hear us. We saw Lionel crouching in a small fort made of pillows, waiting for his opportunity to jump out and scare them.

Before he could make his move, Jason yelled, "Hello Lion!"

Needless to say, Lionel didn't expect it. He jumped up and loudly screamed. Everybody watching couldn't help but laugh.

When Lionel looked back and saw us, he said, "What'd you do that for?"

On the other side of the door, I heard dad say, "What's going on in there?"

Anita said, "Uh, we're just playing make-believe."

Dad said, "Just avoid getting somebody hurt, okay?"

"Okay."

When he was sure he was gone, Lionel opened the vent grate and quietly said, "Mind if I come through? Don't want dad to see me coming out."

We understood. Once, Lionel had left the playroom after terrorizing the younger ones. Dad had come to see what all the screaming was about. I just happened to be in the hallway. When dad realized that Lionel had been the one terrorizing them, he grabbed Lionel by the arm and literally dragged him downstairs to his [dad's] room. I don't know what he did, but I didn't see Lionel for three days. When I saw him, he was very scared and would run away at the sight of dad. He would refuse to be in the same room as dad. I remind you, dad doesn't know how far too far is when it comes to disciplining children. His own father was an army general and therefore was subject to the same measures that he had. Dad never talked about the relationship he had with his dad. Anyway, when dad saw that Lionel was afraid of him, he would get this puzzled look in his eyes, as though he didn't know why Lionel was scared. I knew why, but I didn't tell him.

Anyway, the three of us were able to get back to Jason's room without making too much noise. Before we left, though, Jason insisted on showing us his collection of odd-looking rocks. When we finally left his room, we saw dad with his ear against the door to the playroom. He was facing in our direction. He gave us an odd look.

Jason said, "I wanted to show them my rock collection."

Lionel looked towards the front door and said, "Why's mom awake this early?"

Dad said, "I'm not sure."

At this point, mom was walking back and forth. I only say "walking" because she was going rather slowly.

After that, nothing worth mentioning happened until 8:40. 8:40 is when we start getting ready to go to school. Normally, we have to take several things with us, meaning that we don't end up leaving until about 8:48. However, since this was the last day of school before summer break, we didn't have to bring anything. Dad wished us a good day at school and it was 8:42 when I looked at the clock just before I left. I remind you that it takes us 10 minutes to walk to school.

Outside, I saw other kids coming out of their homes. Most families with children had only one. If they had any more, it was accidental or they were twins or triplets. All of my siblings have friends, many of them sharing. I'm the only child, no, person, in the entire colony that doesn't have any friends at all. All of the other kids either pretend I don't exist or they bully me. And they always do it out of sight of my family or make it look like an accident or bad luck. I don't know why they only bully me. They respect Jenny because she's the fastest, and nobody even thinks about bullying the kid that's blind (I can never remember their name). I know that it's not because I wear a dress every day. There's another girl that always wears a dress (albeit a much fancier one). They know I'm not mute. They've never said anything about me being barefoot. I once asked them and they said it was because I was ugly.

Fine, I admit it. I AM ugly. The shape of my face is quite unattractive. I rarely say it around anybody that doesn't directly bully me because they always say that it's not true or that I should ignore whoever tells me that. It's impossible for me to ignore them or to think that I'm pretty in my own way. I've been bullied every single day I've been at school. I'm serious.

Anyway, I saw 4 big, muscular boys about 20 feet to my right. They walked as though they were trying to prevent anybody to see what was between them. I spotted a blue parasol with pink flowers on it (as a pattern, of course). I knew who it was. It was Adonia, the goddess in human form. Well, it was what everybody else called her. I called her Adonia, the demon in angel form. I call her that because, although she's absolutely beautiful and seems very nice, she's the one who's behind the bullying. The 4 boys were her boyfriends. She turned them into her willing slaves and bodyguards, offering them the chance to see her face directly in return. She's gotten almost everybody else to side with her through threats of physical beatings or offers to see her face directly. The closest anybody has gotten has been through pictures of her face. Whenever she talks to somebody, she has her parasol between their face and hers. She's the second oldest child in the colony at two weeks younger than me. She's been bullying me since the day we met. Seriously. She's called me ugly so many times, it's become ingrained into my brain. I despise her more than anybody could ever understand. I wouldn't be surprised if it turned out that she was the mastermind behind some twisted, evil plot that nobody knows about. She has long, black hair, piercing blue eyes, flawless tanned skin, and a dress that touched the ground that matched her parasol.

Anyway, we got to school at 8:52. The hallways were far from crowded, what with there being only 47 children in the entire colony. There was going to be an all-day assembly. Nobody was looking forward to it. I was actually able to talk to one of the other kids about it without them giving even the slightest insult. That is, until Adonia came into the hallway. When she came into sight, the other kid very quietly apologized and shoved me over. He then walked away. Adonia had promised him something if he bullied me, apparently. It just made me despise her even more.

Before anybody could get to the commons, the school-wide PA came on. "Due to technical difficulties beyond our control, we have cancelled the assembly." Everybody in the hallway (except for Adonia, I noticed) cheered.

"Instead we will be having…an all-day recess for all grades? I don't know who put this on my desk, but if that's what's been decided, who am I to argue?" The PA turned off.

Everybody (again, except for Adonia) cheered even louder and with a lot more vigor.

Adonia said, "What? They cancelled the assembly? How could they?"

Everybody turned to look at her. I heard somebody say, "Freak."

Adonia's bodyguards walked away from her.

Upon noticing this, Adonia said, "Hey! Where are you going? I'll let you all see my face!"

She lifted her parasol and revealed her entire face.

One boy said, "We don't care about your stupid face, ya' bully."

Everybody headed outside towards the playground except for Adonia, who stood there in disbelief. This was the first time in her life when nobody wanted her. I smirked and followed everybody else. She deserved it. Just before I left the hallway, I looked back. She looked angrier than I had ever seen in anybody before. Even dad had never looked that angry.

Let me explain why everybody hates the assembly. It's incredibly boring. Nobody understands what it's about. The chairs are as comfortable as toilet seats. The seating is arranged in a way which means that you're next to the people you hate the most. It gets hot in there quickly. There is no point at all to the assembly (I've heard teachers say that). The worst part is, it lasts for 6 hours. It's like hell for children. It IS hell for children. The only person who has ever expressed a positive feeling for it is Adonia. They began having the assemblies the year Adonia started school. These have only served to reinforce my theory that Adonia is a demon in angel form.

Anyway, when I got outside, the first thing I noticed is that everybody was crowding around somebody. I got closer and I heard Clark's voice.

He said, "I sabotaged the projector they use. Maybe now they'll stop with the assemblies."

I then noticed the principal talking to a teacher in his office (I saw it through the window). I couldn't help but do my best to eavesdrop.

The principal said, "Marta, I don't get why we have these end-of-the-year assemblies. The children don't like them, I don't understand what they're about, they're absolutely pointless, and they serve no purpose."

The teacher said, "I understand that Adonia greatly enjoys them. For some reason."

"Well then, you're gonna have to tell her that we won't be having them ever again."

"I agree, sir."

I was satisfied. I went to the other kids and told them the good news. They all cheered.

Adonia, who was sitting under a nearby tree, jumped up and said, "WHAT? THEY'RE NOT GOING TO DO THE ASSEMBLIES ANYMORE? HOW COULD THEY?"

At that, everybody, including me, moved 20 feet away from her. She groaned and sat back down. The all-day recess was very fun. After a while, I noticed that Adonia was staring at me. The look in her eyes seemed to say, "I'm going to kill you."

After six hours, the principal came out and told us we could go home. Adonia had stared at me the entire time.

I and my siblings walked home together. Halfway to home, I looked back. Adonia had followed us, still staring at me with the look of murder in her eyes. It was seriously freaking me out. When we got home, she was still following us. When the last of my siblings had gotten inside, I quickly got in, shut the door, and locked it as tightly as possible. Then I moved the bench in front of it. Then the coat rack. Then everything in the closet.

Dad then came into the foyer and said, "What are you doing?"

I said, "I'm trying to keep Adonia from getting in."

"Who's Adonia?"

"She's a girl that goes to my school. She followed us home and I'm very certain she wants to kill me."

Dad, a bit hesitantly, helped me barricade the front door. I still didn't feel the slightest bit safe. At this point, it was 5:55. Dad decided to make dinner. I followed him. I felt somewhat safe around him.

Dinner was ready at 6:15. By then, everybody had arrived (dad encouraged punctuality). During dinner, I overheard the younger kids talking about something.

Suddenly, a voice in my head said, "I've decided that there's no point in being angry at you." It sounded like Adonia. Every ounce of my fear went away.

When all of us were done with dinner, Travis said, "We would like everybody except mom and dad to go to the playroom immediately."

I said, "First, can we clear away the stuff in front of the front door?"

I noticed dad rolling his eyes.

After we cleared the front door (it took a lot less time with the help of my siblings), we all went up to the playroom.

I knew very well what was going on. The younger kids were going to hold a meeting. They did this every week. The topic was always different. It used to be on whatever we felt like talking about, until we found out that dad eavesdropped on them (somebody had to go to the bathroom and when they opened the door, it hit dad's face. I once talked to him and he said that he considered snooping and eavesdropping different things).

Anyway, when I opened the door, I was in for a big surprise. All of the other kids in the colony (aside from Adonia) were in the playroom.

I said, "What are they doing here?"

Travis said, "They'd be great participants in this meeting."

I didn't argue.

However, it was a lot more crowded than I was used to.

Travis got onto a makeshift podium and said, "If you will all be respectful enough to not engage in idle conversation during this meeting, we shall begin. Now, this week's topic is…what we think about our parents. Who shall begin?"

A girl that looked similar to Adonia said, "Um, I don't really know what I think about my parents. If I ever ask for something, they give it to me."

Travis said, "How do they discipline you?"

"They don't. Not at all. I've done my best to keep it from getting to me, but Adonia is a different story."

"You live with Adonia?"

"Yeah. She's my adoptive sister."

"Adoptive?"

"Yes. My parents saw her on their doorstep the day I was born and they decided to raise her."

"Was there a note?"

"Yes. It said "Please take care of her. I can't do it myself. Not right now." The handwriting of the note didn't match that of anybody else in the colony."

"Hmm. That's very interesting, Ariana. Thank you for telling us that. Would anybody else like to say something?"

One of Adonia's ex-bodyguards said, "I wanna know more about your parents, Travis."

I said, "I can answer that."

"Well then, go ahead."

"Well, mom's really nice. She's mute, but she can still get her point across."

"Mute?"

"She can't speak."

"Oh."

Ariana said, "Isn't she pregnant?"

I said, "Yes, with triplets."

"That makes now many children total?"

"30."

"30?"

"Yes."

"That's a lot of kids."

"It is."

The other guy said, "What's dad like?"

My siblings took the liberty of answering that. They made it very clear how much they were afraid of him.

When they were done, he said, "I see. Don't know what advice to give you, unfortunately."

I didn't pay attention to the rest of the meeting. I was thinking about mom. Every time I had asked her about what happened at Aperture, the only information she gave me was that she had been put into cryostasis and she had been woken up a very long time later and was set free by the A.I. that was there. When I asked what had happened before she had been put into cryostasis, she had "said" that she had been interviewed and then put into cryostasis to await her turn to be tested, but it never came. I hadn't asked her for a while. I wouldn't bother. She would just say the same thing as always. Every time she had told me, I felt like there was more to it. What she had said was true, but she was skipping a lot of stuff. I then realized that I had never been in mom and dad's room. I remembered that mom would be going to the hospital tomorrow so that the doctors could check on how the triplets were developing. Perhaps then…

I felt somebody nudge my side. It was Jason.

Travis said, "And that concludes our meeting. Thank you for joining us."

There was a knock on the door and I heard dad say, "All right, kiddos. Time for your friends to go home and for you to get to bed. It's past 11:00."

That was the first time he had ever called us "kiddos".

Travis said, "Wow, I didn't think we were going on THAT long."

Everybody got up and left the playroom. I noticed that dad had a somewhat hurt expression on his face. I didn't bother saying anything, though. I went straight to my room, took off my dress and underwear, got into bed, turned off my alarm and my light, and went to sleep.

**Author's note: I wanted to say something, but I forgot what.**


	3. Chell's diary

I had a very strange dream that night. Adonia was standing ten feet away from me. I don't know why, but she then took off her dress. She wasn't wearing shoes. I noticed that the skin on her legs was turning red before my very eyes. Her toenails were turning into yellow claws. Diamond-shaped scales were forming on her skin. The same things were happening above her waistline as well. Her teeth were becoming sharp and her fingernails had become true, yellow claws. Red scales covered her skin. All her hair fell out and she became noticeably taller. The whites of her eyes turned yellow and her irises were red. In her hands, she held a metal bar, one end of which was narrow and sharp, like a sword (I've read about them in books). The other end was shaped more like a rock, apparently meant for bludgeoning things. The most disturbing change was on the front of her torso. She looked like a monster.

I seriously thought she was going to attack me.

Instead, she said, "I have decided that I have no reason to be angry at you." Her voice sounded very unnatural.

She turned around and I could see that she also had a long, reptilian tail.

I then heard a loud crash. That's when I woke up.

I got out of bed, grabbed my dress, put it on, and rushed downstairs.

I ran into the kitchen to find Jenny and Jason standing in the middle of a mess of pots, pans, and utensils on the floor.

Jenny said, "Oops…"

John, who was watching, said, "Did you have to run into her, Jason?"

Jason said, "It was an accident! Besides, they needed washing anyway."

Richard, also watching, said, "Seems as "accidental" as you tripping me down the stairs!" There were several bandages and a few bruises on him.

Jason noticed me and said, "Hi Marla! Mom and Dad already left for mom's appointment. They were a little delayed, but they should arrive on time."

Richard said, "Yeah, delayed because you tripped me at the top of the stairs!"

"If I tripped you, it was an accident. By the way, did you guys know that mom keeps a diary on the computer in their room?"

Everybody turned their eyes to him.

At the same time, everybody said, "She does?"

Jason said, "Yep. It's password protected though, and I don't dare try to guess it. I got a glimpse of mom typing when dad rushed into their room. I think mom forgot to close it."

Franklin said, "And you're planning on reading it. Tsk, tsk, tsk."

"Oh, I'm not planning on reading it."

We were all surprised. "You're not planning on reading it?"

Jason had a huge grin on his face. "Nope. I'm planning on Marla reading it."

Nobody was more surprised than me. "Me? Why me?"

Jason said, "Mom and dad should be gone for several hours, plenty of time to read her diary."

John said, "I wouldn't count on it. Mom and dad should be back not too long after lunch."

Jason chuckled and said, "You forgot to ask Marla something yesterday, John."

"I did? Oh! Uh, Marla, did you remember to put on your underwear yesterday?"

I said, "Of course I did."

"Did you put them on this morning?"

I quickly ran to my room. A few kids started laughing as I left. After I put my underwear on, I opened the door to find Jason standing outside it.

He quietly said, "The coast is clear. I have to go help the others wash the stuff dropped on the floor, but you don't have to." He then ran off. He moved as quietly and quickly as a cat.

I slowly walked towards mom and dad's room. They must've been in a hurry to leave: the door was open. They rarely left it open. I went through and left the door slightly ajar. Sure enough, mom had kept a diary on the computer and it was open. I first decided to look in the closet first. Strangely, there was a large cube in there. There were buffers on its edges and there were circles on the middle of its faces with hearts on them. It looked like somebody had once tried to burn it. There was also an orange jumpsuit in the closet, along with a white shirt that said, "Aperture Laboratories". There was also a weird broken-up circle on it that the first "A" was part of. There were also weird boots in the closet that looked like they were meant to protect someone if they were going to land on something hard from a large height.

I got out and looked at the clock. It was 9:18.

I rubbed my hands together and said, "All right. Let's do this."

I sat down at the desk. The monitor said:

What would you like to do?

Edit an entry

View an entry

Make a new entry

I clicked on "View an entry". I opted for the very first entry.

It said:

_Finally. I've found a new home. Who would've known there was a thriving underground colony this far from the facility? I don't know how far I walked, but I don't care. I can finally forget about the facility and everything that happened there. Anyway, they were all surprised to find another human. I didn't bother telling them the whole story. There was no point to it. After all, what happened at the facility isn't going to affect this place. They gave me an injection they said would "greatly slow my aging". Anyway, maybe I'll be able to find my true love here…but that probably won't be for a while._

The entry ended there. I went to the entry that was the next week.

_There's some disease going around the colony. Some people told me about it. I won't put everything they said here, but they did say that, once you get it, you're doomed. One man estimated that there would be 10,000 people left when it stopped. I hope he's right. People are really trying to avoid getting sick. He didn't say what the first symptoms would be, though. I think I'm on edge just like everybody else. It's almost midnight and I'm still awake. I'll update this once I get some sleep._

The next entry was three days later.

_According to the computer calendar, I've been asleep for three days. Someone's at the door. It was a man. He told me not to open my door and that he and his team were checking to see who was still left. Glad I woke up when I did. He said they'll come back once they're done. I just remembered. When people get the disease, they go into a coma a few hours after the first symptoms show up and die three days later. Could I have…? Someone's at the door. It was the man again. He said that six people didn't answer and that he and his team would be back in three months. I just looked out the window. The only people out are people completely covered in biohazard protection suits. They take this outbreak really seriously. The guy from three days ago said I would understand when it comes at full force. I won't update this until that man comes back._

The next update was three months later.

_The man came today. He said that, out of the 2,000 inhabitants of this apartment complex, only 7, including me, answered. He also said that he's the only one left in his team. I wish he talked some more. It's the first time I've heard another human voice in two months. The first month, I could hear the sound of other people trying to live as normal a life as they could, occasionally interrupted by screaming. It all faded away during the month. I've had nightmares where I'm in a place that's completely empty, except for maybe a few corpses. The display that mimics the sky is off. The only light is from lamps and street lights, and the street lights are all turned off during the night. I just remembered. The guy said that, during the plague, the display turns off by itself and they can't get it back on until the plague is over. I don't know if he was joking or not, but it's creepy. Whatever the case, it's making me begin to go insane. I'm glad I'm still alive. Glad… Every time I see or hear that word, my memories for the facility rush back. I guess I'll never be able to forget that place. At least I'll never go back there. I just realized that I feel a lot better. I guess thinking about it restores my sanity. Anyway, the man said somebody would come when the plague was over. I wish I knew who he is. I hope he survives. I've seen people collapsing in the streets._

The next entry was three months later.

_It's over. The plague is over. I was close to losing my sanity when I heard the knock on the door. It was the man. He told me to open my door if I was still there. When I opened the door, he hugged me. He told me I was the first person he had seen in weeks. They were going to have a meeting in the center of the city to see how many people were left. About 450 people came. Everybody that came was between the age of 20 and 40 in calendar years. They had everybody fill out forms about us. I wrote on my form that I had gotten the disease and lived and when I got it. One person that was left was a woman that was part of the group that told me about the disease. I was able to find out her name, Charity, before they took blood tests on everybody remaining. For safety reasons, they moved everybody remaining to a section that had been uninhabited before the plague. I ended up getting a small mansion. I want to know more about the man. I think I'm getting attracted to him. (That's not surprising, though, because he's really handsome.)_

Well, now I knew how mom met Charity and dad. Charity is a great friend of mom's. She used to babysit us when I was younger. She has two children, a young boy and girl. The next entry was for the next day.

_I learned quite a bit about the man. His name is Johnson Smith and he was also born in the 20__th__ century. He used to work at Black Mesa, Aperture Laboratories' rival company. He told me about his family, his long-dead girlfriend, and the invasion of Earth at Black Mesa. It was pretty scary, to say the least. He was interested to hear about what happened to Aperture. He seems like a good person, albeit rather strict._

I didn't want to spend too long reading the entries so I skipped the rest of the entry and went to the entry that was for the day mom and dad got married.

_It's been exactly five years since I came here and already I'm married. Everybody was really happy for me and Johnson. I can't wait for the life ahead of us. I did notice something, though. A guy asked me where I had come from before I came to the colony. I gave him the version I gave everybody else, but it made me realize something: I hardly remember what happened at whatever it was. Oh well. I guess it's for the best._

I skipped ahead to four years and three months later. There was an entry about a fourth into the month and one for almost every day after that. I looked at the first one.

_I just got the news today. I'm pregnant. Everything still feels like a blur. I'm the first woman that's become pregnant since the plague. Several people are worried about me, but I don't care. I feel really happy. I still can't get over my excitement. I'm so happy…_

There was a long line of gibberish after that, ending with _my wife has fainted._ I couldn't help but chuckle. I skipped ahead three months and read the entry in the middle of the month.

_The first trimester is almost over for me. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Unlike almost all of the other women, I didn't get nauseous at all. I did get cravings. I've never been so hungry in my entire life. My pregnancy is starting to become obvious, but I don't care. I can't wait to find out what gender it is._

I skipped to the entry three months later.

_The second trimester is almost over for me. I'm getting tired, but I'm not surprised. I found out the gender today. It's a girl. I can't wait to see her for the first time. Some people are still worried about my health, but there have been no complications yet. For some reason, being pregnant has caused my memories of the facility to rush to me. I've even gotten some that I don't understand. I can't help but wonder how he's doing now, or how she would react upon finding out I was pregnant with a girl. I've gotten so attached to my girl. I can't wait to see her._

It felt really weird to be reading about how my mom felt before I was born. I skipped ahead to the entry for the day I was born.

_I had a weird dream last night. I was being tested by her and I was wearing the long-fall boots, a brown shirt, brown pants, I looked like I was 16, and I was wearing my hair down. Anyway, my due date is in a few days but it feels like it's going to be sooner. I've been so tired for these past three months and I'm having some difficulty walking. I've been having cramps and they're coming somewhat often… Oh my god, I need to get my husband. She's coming. I'll finish this when I get back._

_I hold my baby girl, Marla, in my arms as I type this. From what we can tell right now, she looks like me. She's absolutely adorable. I could just go on how I think she's adorable, but I'm not won't. I can't wait to watch her become a child. Of course, she'll grow up to be an adult and all that'll be left of her childhood is memories. Maybe I'll have more children. They'll grow up as well, but I'll be able to relive being a parent again. I think it'd be good for Marla as well._

Oh how little did she know how many children she would have. I skipped ahead to the date of when mom found out she was pregnant with female triplets.

_I'm pregnant with triplets, all girls. This'll make thirty children. Never in my life would I have anticipated having this many children. At least Marla and John help out with controlling the younger children. Funny…I keep going back to when I first saw Marla. I can remember it like it was today. She truly does look exactly like me. A few people are still worried that I'll get the plague and die. They've kept telling me that I should stop becoming pregnant. I wish they would listen to me when I tell them that I'm not even trying anymore. I get pregnant whether I want to or not. I'm still trying to figure out why I keep giving birth on June 22. It has never been any other date. I'll just have to accept it. Still, thirty children…_

I skipped ahead to June 6th of this year, yesterday.

_The dream I had the night before Marla was born…I had it again last night. But now I realize that it wasn't me…it was Marla. Marla was the one being tested by her. I don't get it…I don't get it at all…_

The entry ended there. I couldn't help but wonder who mom was talking about. Was it another woman? Was it the A.I. at the Aperture facility? I wished that mom had been specific. I looked at the clock. It was 9:28. It hadn't been as long as I had thought. I decided to go back and read every single entry in mom's diary. When I finally got done, I knew about everything that mom had experienced while in the colony. Not once did she ever say who "she" or "he" was. I did get the impression that she didn't exactly like either of them. They didn't like her either, because they apparently had both tried to kill her more than once. However, "he" had also saved mom's life. I really wanted to know more, but asking her was completely out of the question. Especially if dad was around at the time. I looked at the clock. It was 5:50. I had spent several hours reading mom's diary. And my parents still weren't back. I clicked a button on the screen that said, "Return to main menu". It went to the screen it had been when I first got on. I quickly got up, pushed the chair back in, went out the door, and closed it. There was nobody in the foyer. I quickly ran to my room and looked in my closet. Along with several brown pieces of underwear and a few brown dresses, I found a sleeve-less shirt and pants that were the same color and made out of the same material as my dress. I also found a sports bra. I don't know why, but I took off my dress, and put on the bra, the pants, and the shirt in that order. I wasn't used to wearing pants or a shirt, so it was a little uncomfortable. I then wondered why I had done that. I then left to find everybody else.

When I closed my door, a voice said, "Hello Marla. I though you didn't like wearing anything besides that dress."

I turned around to find Charity standing ten feet to my left with John and Jason behind her.

I said, "Err, hi Charity. What are you doing here?"

"Your father wanted me to come here because they were going to be at the hospital a lot longer than they anticipated. Where have you been all day?"

"Reading."

The moment I said that, John put his hands in his face and Jason said, "Hey, I've been meaning to talk to you, Marla." He rushed past Charity, grabbed my arm, and ran into the nearest bathroom.

Once he closed the door, in a quiet but frantic voice he said, "Marla, I didn't get a chance to tell you about something important."

In an equally quiet voice, I said, "What?"

"As far as I know, dad has hidden cameras in every room except the bathrooms."

"What makes you so sure?"

"I once saw him on the computer and it looked like there were videos from cameras on the monitor. What's more, it looked like they were taken from angles that were from objects that I always thought were suspicious."

The way he put it didn't really make sense, but I understood.

Jason continued. "I've been able to avoid getting caught snooping because I always block the cameras before I do anything else. I haven't told anybody else about this, not even mom. You know how dad is."

I nodded.

"Well, the point is, when dad gets back…"

I finished for him. "The first thing he's gonna do is look at the security cameras. And he'll see me on their computer."

Jason said, "After dinner, you need to leave. Where you go is up to you. But hide where it won't be easy to find you. If they find you and it hasn't been long enough, I don't want to think about what dad will do."

Just then, we heard Charity yell, "Dinner's ready!"

We both left and went to the kitchen.

Hector said, "Where have you been all day?"

"Reading."

He didn't ask me what I had been reading.

When I was done with dinner, I said, "Charity, can I go for a walk outside?"

She smiled and said, "Sure. But don't come home late."

I got up and said, "I won't."

All my siblings watched me as I left the room. They knew I wasn't going for a walk outside. Charity is very kind, but she rather ignorant and doesn't know me or my siblings very well. If she did, she would've known that something was wrong, because I never go outside after dinner unless something's wrong.

I went outside. There was hardly anybody else around.

There was just one man who, upon noticing me, said, "Shouldn't you be having dinner?"

I said, "I just had dinner."

"Did something happen today, Marla?"

I just walked away.

I walked towards the other side of the colony. I hardly noticed when I walked past the hospital.

After several minutes, I heard Adonia say, "What are you doing here?" She was walking right next to me.

I said, "Taking a walk."

She said, "You mean "trying to find a place to hide from my dad's wrath", don't you?"

I stopped. "How did you know?"

"Why else would you be here at this time of day?"

I couldn't think of anything to say.

She said, "Listen, no matter where you go in this place, they'll find you. It's just not big enough. As such, you'll have to hide somewhere else."

"Where else can I go?"

"My dear girl, what do you think they base the weather off of?"

"The surface."

"Yes. And there is where you must hide if you want to be found when you want to be found."

"How in the world am I supposed to get to the surface?"

"Let me show you."

She grabbed my arm and ran to the edge of the colony. She took me to a metal door on the wall and opened it. It led to a room that was dimly lit by hanging light and had a rusting metal table in the middle. She opened another door that led to a small, circular room that had three buttons on the wall: up, down, and emergency. She stayed outside as I went in.

I said, "What am I supposed to do?"

"Press the button that says, "Up"." With that, she shut the door.

I looked at the buttons. Would they even work? If I was to avoid getting caught, I had to try. I pressed the button. I suddenly got the feeling that the room was moving up. After what seemed like an eternity, it stopped and the door opened by itself. I hesitantly walked out. The door shut behind me. I was in a dark tunnel made of stone. It sloped up and I could tell that there was light at the end of the tunnel. I couldn't see anything else, though.

It was too late to turn back now. I straightened my back and walked forward.


	4. The cores

The tunnel sloped up into a deep hole. Parts of the side had been carved out to provide footholds, resembling a ladder. When I looked up, I could see the sky at the top. I climbed up the side of the hole, wondering what the surface looked like. Surely there were trees and grass. In school, they had taught us about plant and animal life. I had found the lessons about animal life very interesting, but they were never enough. I had seen pictures, but I wanted to see the animals for real. The only animals that live in the colony are humans. The wolf always stuck in my mind. It had always seemed such a majestic animal. I had always been tempted to find a way to the surface so that I could see one, but…well…I don't think I need to explain.

Anyway, I finally put my hand on top of the hole. When I lifted myself out, I was greeted by the most beautiful sight I had ever seen. The sky looked so smooth and real. In the colony, you could tell that the sky wasn't real. Out here, it was just beautiful. The clouds looked like balls of cotton. To my left was a vast field with nothing but tall grass. To my right was a huge grouping of trees. They always called a large group of trees a forest. Never in my life had I ever seen so many trees before.

I wanted to explore the surface. I headed northeast, into the forest (I could tell it was northeast because of the position of the sun). The air in the forest smelled like nothing I had ever smelled before. It smelled so clean and fresh. I could hear the cawing and chirping of birds. I felt so happy.

Then… "IS ANYBODY OUT THERE?" I didn't expect anybody else to be out here, but perhaps it wasn't very surprising.

I yelled, "I'M HERE!" I then began running to where the voice had come from.

"IF ANYBODY'S THERE, WE'RE OVER HERE!"

We kept calling to each other until we didn't need to yell anymore.

However, even when we could talk normally, I still couldn't see him. His voice also sounded weird.

I said, "Where are you?"

He said, "We're up in a tree." His voice sounded like it was coming from the tree next to me. With some difficulty, I was able to climb it.

I said, "I think I found the tree. I still can't see you, though."

He said, "I think you're right above us."

I looked down the side opposite of the side I had climbed on. Hanging on one of the branches were three odd-looking metal spheres with handles.

I heard another voice say, "Listen, even if she does find us, how is she going to get us down?" The voice came from the sphere in the middle.

The voice I had been talking to said, "Um, didn't think about that, actually." The voice came from the sphere closest to the tree.

The second voice said, "You ARE a moron."

"Hey, she'll figure something out!"

I broke off the branch at a point where the spheres wouldn't fall off, but I would be able to get them.

When the branch crashed on the ground, a third voice said, "We're being saved! We're being saved! Yay!" It came from the remaining sphere. He also talked very quickly.

I carefully took the first sphere off the branch. He had a yellow eye and looked around at everything.

He said, "Hey! You're that lady! No you can't be that lady. You're that lady's daughter!"

I said, "Huh?"

"The lady that helped me get into SPACE!"

The second sphere said, "Would you shut up about space? We spent 25 years there. I'm tired of you."

I got the second sphere off. His eye was green.

When he saw me, he said, "WOW! You look EXACTLY like that lady from 25 years ago!"

I got the third sphere off. His eye was blue and fractured.

When he saw me, he said, "Oh! Uh, hello. Um, you look, uh, exactly like a woman I, uh…"

I knew what he was going to say. "Well, I get a lot of people saying I look like my mom."

"Your mother?"

"Yes…"

"Uh, did she ever tell you about anybody named Wheatly?"

"No."

"Did she ever say anything about Aperture Laboratories?"

"Yes."

"What did she tell you?"

I told him what mom had always communicated to us.

Wheatly said, "Wow. She left out a lot."

"How much more to the story is there?"

"I couldn't tell you everything. You'd have to ask your mom and…and…HER."

"Mom mentioned two people in her diary, which she referred to as "him" and "her". You're "him", aren't you?"

"Uh, I'd be surprised if I wasn't."

The green-eyed sphere said, "You read your mother's diary?"

I got a little embarrassed. "Yes. That's why I'm here."

"Wow. I didn't know she was like that."

"It's not my mom I'm scared of. It's my dad."

"Your dad? What's he like?"

I told him.

When I was done, he said, "Hmm."

I said, "Anyway, who's "her", Wheatly?"

Wheatly said, "Um…"

Suddenly, Wheatly's eye flickered and closed.

I panicked a little. "What happened?"

The green-eyed sphere said, "I'm not sure, but you might've overstressed him…"

"Hmm." I decided not to bring it up again.

In order to get the spheres on the ground without doing possible damage, I had to roll them down the side of the tree.

The yellow-eyed sphere said, "WHEEE!"

Once I got down, I picked up the spheres, with Wheatly in my right hand and the other two in my left and I continued walking northeast.

Along the way, the yellow-eyed sphere said, "What's your favorite thing about space? Mine is space. Space going back to space can't wait. Space… Space. Trial. Puttin' the system on trial. In space. Space system. On trial. Guilty. Of having been in space! Going to space jail! Space space wanna go back to space yes please space. Space space. Go back to space. Space space wanna go back to space. Space space going back to space oh boy. Ba! Ba! Ba ba ba! Space! Ba! Ba! Ba ba ba!"

The green-eyed sphere said, "WOULD YOU JUST SHUT UP ABOUT SPACE? I think you're worse than four-eyes. Course, I probably wouldn't say that if I had also been stuck in space with him…"

I said, "You remind me of Benny."

"Me or the space core?" The space core kept talking.

"The space core."

"Is Benny your younger brother?"

"No, and I'm glad he isn't. He can be amusing, but for his parents, he's the most irritating being they've ever encountered."

"I think I understand how they feel. Do you have a younger brother?"

"Yes. Several."

"How many?"

"15." The space core stopped talking.

"Did you say…15?"

"Yes."

"That's 16 kids."

"Actually, I have 26 siblings, and our mom is pregnant with triplets, all female."

"That's…30 kids."

"All of the other families where I live either had children by accident or their desire for children was stronger than their fear of the plague."

"The plague?"

I told him about the disease that had plagued (no pun intended) the colony I lived in ten times.

He said, "Wow, that's one heck of a disease. Glad I can't get those kinds of viruses."

"It was bacteria. Diseases caused by bacteria can be cured."

"I knew that."

I ended the conversation there. I couldn't help but wonder where the Aperture facility was. I also couldn't stop thinking about Wheatly. How did he know my mom? Would he be okay? Who is "her"? Is she the A.I. at the Aperture facility? What was her name?

Anyway, by the time Wheatly woke up, night had fallen and we were stargazing in a field just outside the forest.

Rick, the green-eyed sphere, said, "Wow… It IS beautiful…"

The space core said, "The Milky Way! Ursa Minor! Circinus! Libra! Lupus!"

I had no idea what he was talking about, but I didn't really care.

I then heard Wheatly groan. I looked over and saw him opening his eye.

He said, "Wha-what happened?"

I said, "I think I overstressed you asking about her…"

"Oh. Well, I, uh, don't think I'm too surprised about that. I don't have very positive memories about her."

"Can you tell me why?"

"Well, she's not a very good person, if you know what I mean. Uh, if she were to see me, she would try to kill me right away."

"Why?"

"Uh, I'd rather not explain."

"I see."

The next morning, I picked up the three spheres and continued on my way.

The space sphere kept talking about the stars he had seen last night.

Several hours later, we went into a field of what seemed to be tall, golden grass. In the distance, I could see an old shack.

I suddenly felt the ground beneath me lower.

I said, "This is not good…"

The ground then caved in. I landed in a white, dirty room with plants growing in it. Needless to say, I was very surprised.

Wheatly said, "Oh no…"

I said, "We're in the facility, aren't we?"

"Yes… If she finds me…I…I think I'm done for."

"I'll make sure you stay safe."

"Thanks, but it doesn't really help me feel better."

"Unfortunately, I think we're stuck in this room."

I took a step forward…and the floor gave way. I landed in another room. When I landed, the floor gave way. Three rooms later, I landed on a large, clear tube. I walked along it very carefully, for one wrong move would send me plummeting to the distant ground. After several minutes, I was able to get to the ground. I had noticed several large cubes lying in the tubes along the way. They looked a lot like the one mom had in her closet, except they weren't burned.

Not very far away, there was a large, domed room, the dome made of panels that looked like they could be moved.

When I started walking towards it, Wheatly said, "You're not going to try to go in there, are you?"

I said, "I am. Why?"

"That's HER chamber!"

"So she IS the AI here."

"Yes, and she's evil!"

"I'm just going to look."

"Alright, but be very careful."

I quietly walked over to the dome. I was able to squeeze past the first layer of panels. I peered through the gaps in the second layer of panels…and immediately realized something was wrong. I squeezed through the second layer of panels.

When Wheatly realized what I was doing, he quietly said, "What are you doing? She-oh."

He had seen it. A massive limbless robot hanging from the ceiling, lying on the ground, not moving.

"Wow, that's…unexpected."

I put the spheres on the ground and went over to what appeared to be her head. I knelt down to get a better look. There was a large yellow light on the front with "lisps" around it.

The light then moved to look at me. I moved back in surprise. She was still alive.

A faint and weak voice said, "Help…me…Chell…" Her eye flickered a little.

I couldn't help but feel sympathetic for her. I gently stroked the side of her head and nodded. I went over to the spheres and picked them up. Two panels on the wall moved aside, allowing me to leave without having to squeeze through the panels.

When I was out of the room and the panels had closed, Wheatly said, "That went a lot better than I expected."

I said, "Now I've gotta save her."

"What? I told you, she's evil! It's not right to save anybody that's evil unless you have a really good reason."

"I can't just leave her like that. Besides, I think getting out of here will be a lot easier if she's fully active."

"Well, maybe you'll be able to convince her to bring me with you, uh, when you leave."

"I'll do my best. Now, how do I start…?"

Suddenly, a voice not very far away said, "I can help you with that!" His voice sounded even stranger than Wheatly's.

Wheatly said, "Could it be…?"

I said, "Where are you?"

"I'm over here. Keep following the sound of my voice."

I followed it to a large metal crate with a wooden door.

I said, "Uh, am I there yet?"

The voice said, "Just open the door."

Inside the metal crate was a bedroom. At least it looked like a bedroom. Attached to a rail on the ceiling was another sphere, who had a yellow eye that looked like her's.

When he saw Wheatly, he said, "Wheatly? I thought you were dead! Oh, what a sight for sore eyes you are!"

Wheatly said, "Nolan? I thought you had gone like everybody else! Where have you been?"

"I've been doing some work here and there. Man, am I glad to see you. When you were sucked into space, I thought I'd never see you again."

I said, "I hate to interrupt this reunion, but why does your voice sound weird, Nolan?"

"It's just my accent."

"Accent?"

"Yes. The guy that made me gave me the same accent that he had."

"What's an accent?"

"Nevermind. Put the others on the rail."

With some difficulty, I was able to do so.

I said, "Now what?"

Nolan, who retreated into a hole on the ceiling at the end of the rail, said, "Hold on."

I suddenly felt the crate being moved. The wall broke and I could see that the crate was being moved upward.

Nolan said, "Okay, I'm not good at navigating this, so I'll probably end up destroying most of the walls."

That's exactly what ended up happening.

Rick said, "Can't you steer straight?" We crashed into something else.

"You think you can do a better job of steering this thing?"

Rick didn't answer.

Eventually, we came across a place where there was a large hole in the wall.

Nolan said, "Okay, that leads to one of the testing tracks. There's a way to GLaDOS's power supply somewhere along the way. Also, look for a gun that makes holes. Not bullet holes but-well you'll figure it out. I would recommend holding onto something."

The crate crashed into the wall.

Nolan came through the hole and said, "Now, it would be a good idea for you to have some long-fall boots. There's probably some in the closet."

I looked and, sure enough, there were the boots. I put them on to find that they fit perfectly. It was a little awkward standing with my heels raised quite a bit, supported only by a curved metal bar.

Nolan said, "Just go through and we'll meet you up ahead."

Rick said, "Who's "we"?"

I went through the hole in the wall and landed in a room that had broken glass covering the floor that was in another room (didn't know how else to say that).

I heard Nolan yell, "Good luck!"

A voice said, "Due to central core failure, these pre-recorded messages will guide you through the testing track. The portal will open and testing will begin in three, two, one."

A section of the wall of the room I was in had an orange-rimmed hole suddenly appear on it. I looked through it…and it looked like I was looking at the room from the left. I looked to the left to find a blue-rimmed hole on the wall in the other room. I went through the orange-rimmed hole and apparently went through the blue-rimmed at the same time. Apparently the holes were called portals. The name seemed to fit.

I said to myself, "All right, let the games begin."

**Author's note: I remembered what I wanted to say in the last chapter. I am assuming that, when Chell arrived at the colony, her biological age was 30. Also, Nolan is speaking in a Cockney accent. It's a reference to the fact that the original voice actor of Wheatly, Richard Lord, had a Cockney accent. If I got any of the cores' dialects wrong, please let me know so that I can fix it. I want to be as accurate as possible as far as the way they talk.**


End file.
